Did you find the lyrics yesterday? God says, "I will not give my glory to another." (Isa. 42:8). You'll hear that repeated multiple times in the bridge of Matt Redman's Heart of Worship. And God says that he will "open eyes that are blind" (v. 7), the basis for the line in Amazing Grace: "I once...was blind but now I see."
Today, soak in Isaiah 42:10-25. Ever heard Paige's Darkness Into Light? You'll find where that came from here. But what is God speaking to your heart right now in your circumstances through this part of his Word? Here's what I'm hearing:
They would not follow his ways; they did not obey his laws. So he poured out on them his burning anger. . . It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart. (v. 24-25)
This isn't the Charmin-stuffed God that I think a lot of Christians concoct in their minds. God is all-out passion. He is fire. He is fury. His emotions for people are intense! As passionately as he loves us, he is passionately angered by our stubborn self-will that leads us away from him and causes us to waste the life he has given us. When he thinks of all my potential for good wasting away in a dump because I'm so consumed with what I think I want, it burns God up. And he will burn my backside with an eventual blast of his anger. Not because he's mean and tyrannical. He wants me to get the message and change before it's too late.
This is the scarier side of God--the side I must have a healthy fear of. But it also intensifies my wonder of him. Like the mighty lion Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia, God isn't safe, but he is good. I can relate to Addison Road's burning question, What Do I Know of Holy? I intend to try to avoid experiencing the fire of God's anger and intead be filled with the fire of his passion. One thing God never is is cold. He won't be tamed or put in cold storage for me to pull him out and thaw him when I need a blessing.
God is fiery in the best sort of way. He is never apathetic or unmoved by what is going on with me. He cares immensely. He is either fired up by how I am letting him maximize my impact on others and my world or he is burning up about my wasted life. Either emotion, however opposite they may be, is coming from his red hot passionate love for me.
God, fill me with your fire!
Okay, you guys have been quiet lately. I'd love to hear your own thoughts from this passage. This shouldn't be a one-way conversation.
If you'd like to share your thoughts, comment below. Either sign in with your Google account profile or select Anonymous from the drop-down list.
Yes, Chris, this is a side of God that most people, including me, don't really like to hear about! God is LOVE and that makes me very very happy. But it is true what you wrote. God is never "luke-warm" about us. Sometimes it is difficult to know what is happening, though. When something dreadful comes along we cannot help but ask, "Is it because of me?" But Job maintained his innocency even in the face of people blaming him. If only we could always know just what the lessons of life are supposed to be teaching us it would be a lot easier. The important thing for me is to KEEP ON TRUSTING God, no matter what happens. I will try to live as close to Him as I am humanly able, but I will fail because I am human. Then only His Grace can save, and it will!! Love your thoughts!! Thanks for taking time to share even when we don't comment we read and benefit from them.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Grandma, no one wants to hear about the "bad side". It is kind of scary to think that God might be mad at me. Especially lately, those thoughs "Is God mad at me?" and "Have I done something wrong?" have run through my head several times. You don't know, and that is one of the things in life that scares me.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting! Just remember that God is good and God is very patient. If your heart is full of him he is going to deal gently with you. If your face is turned towards him your backside isn't going to get burned. He's not looking for an excuse to be mad at you. Sometimes he puts us through a different kind of fire--the fire of testing. But he is always working for your good!
ReplyDelete"My son, do not despise the Lord's dicipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in." ~Proverbs 3:11
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